Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1887-04-01

into the cabin below. gazed fixedlI
upward for moment, thinking tina!
j perhaps my imagination was playin,
4 q trick upon mebut no, there wa
Il the face, distinct, uncannY, motion
i less. Deeming it an intrusion on TIL,
i part Of one OF the men upon our pri.
vacy. FASTENED to the door and
sprang up the companion way. eager
4 to surprise the intruder. I was on the
deck in an instant, and to my amaze.
ment saw that, except the man at the
wheel there was no one abaft the
mainmast. ] approached the wheels,
man and, with assumed carelessness,
asked who it was that had just left
the pinnacle. With look OF surprise
that was evidently genuine he an.
swered that since had gone below not
q man had been aft but himself.
str oiled or'ard, but the men were
lounging about as usual, some spin.
ming yarns, Others gazing listlessiy
over the side, but apparently just as
they were before I had left the deck
remember that one OF them, an Azore
islander, was grooming away in a low
voice at one of the chants peculiar to
his people, and never heard that air
in after days without being reminded
OF the horrors OF that night.
Concluding that the mysterious face
at the pinnacle was q creature of nv
own imagination, I again took my
seat on the vice bench, determined to
keep a sharp eye upon the weather,
which by this time had grown very
threatening. A darker night I never
saw. The ship was rushing through the
water at the average rate of about
eight knots, leaving a long trail OF
phosphorescent light tn atgleamed far
in her wake. The wind was no longer
steady, but rose and fell in irregular
gusts, causing the vessel to run al.
most upon an even keel at times, and
then to keel over and boil along with
i chain plates dragging in the water.
Great flashes OF light lit up the scene
| at intervals, showing q massive cloud
bank rising rapidly almost dead ahead.
My boat steerer, who had been anx.
iously looking out for'ard for some
| time, came up to me and said: II
think we're going to get q heavy squall
out there before long, sir; it looks
mighty black" had about made up
my mind to get in the light canvass,
and clew up the fore and main-sails,
despite the commands OF the skipper,
when a loud exclamation from the
boat steerer of "fore God it's comm
STRIP caused me to spring to my feet.
First there was a prolonged rum.
bling sound like distant roll of mus
kerry, followed by O. terrific peal Of
thunder that seemed to rend the ocean
to its very depths, then a furious
downfall OF rain ratified upon the deck
like ashower OF falling buckshot. The
squall was upon us in all it's fury, and
struck the ship right forward as If it
had been g. blow from some gigantic
arm from heaven. The worst had
happened-we we're struck aback. The
vessel leaping forward on her course
that drove her sails flat back upon the
splintering masts causing her to rear
her bows high in the air, almost bring
ing the taffrail under water. shout
ed to the men; "Haul UP the foresail!''
then Selling hold of the rail, clambered
up the slanting deck, and laid hold OF
the main clew garnet to get up the
starboard clew. The sail was fast
bound back to the mast and rigging
by the force OF the squall, and might
as we'll have tried to lift the ship.
There was a boom like the roar OF
cannon, and saw the lib, blown clear
out of the holt-ropes, fly away like
white cloud to leeward. I shouted to
the helmsman, "Put your wheel to
starboard there-hard starboard''
There came no answer.
'Starboard that wheel there: quick,
for Gods sake!' Still there was
no reply. Believing that the man
had been carried overheard, !
turned hastily and looked toward
the pinnacle. A prolonged glare OF
sulphurous light lit up the scene as !
gazed aft, and saw as distinctly as
ever saw anything in my life-a man
at the wheel-not the man had spok.
en- to few minutes before, but him
they had left to die upon the beach at
Bermuda-the Malay. Hestood there,
his hands grasping the spokes, the
embodiment OF avenging fate, and ]
saw to my horror, that he had
put the wheel hard to port. This
meant destruction to us all, and,
despite the icy terror of my
heart. I again shouted in my
despair, "Starboard your wheel! hard
a. starboard!" Back upon the gale was
borne the answering cry. a cry OF
doom, ''Ay. ay, sir! Hard port"
then knew full we'll that the Helen
Mar was lost. Held firmly in the teeth
OF the furious squall by the hand OF
the ghostly helmsman, the doomed
vessel reared her bows high in air
like the head of frightened steed.
drew my knife and cut loose from it's
flashing an extra spar that had been
made fast to the bulwarks. Looking
seward / saw a huge billow rising
mountain high over the stern. For a
second it hung curling above us, and
then descended with the fury of an avail
anche, 8 nashing the detk and bulwarks
OF the Helen Mar as though they were
of paste-board. Grasping my precious
spar, I was borne by the billow far
out to leeward. l managed to. cling
to my rall support until daybreak,
when, as by a miracle, I was rescued
by the crew ofthe Danish brig '.RoIlo,"
bound for St. George. After my re-
covery from the fever into which was
thrown by the events of that night, I
told my story in substance to the
ships owners as l have told it here.
They naturally concluded that my
reason was unhinged by suffering
sand exposure; hence, to my incompe-
stency as q seaman, rather than to the
real ca use, have they ever since ascrib.
ed the 'Loss Of the Helen Mar"
..s. ... f. G.J.
A Bit Of Old London.
From the Pail Mall Gazette. It,,
All who know and hone ia sea OLD